Multiple-fuse plug



P. B. WEILER MULTIPLE FUSE PLUG Feb. 19 1924.

Filed April 8. 1921 INVENTU H.

7311MB Val/L ATTY.

Patented Feb. 19, 1924.

UNITED STATES PETER B. WEILER, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN.

MULTIPLE-FUSE PLUG Application filed April 8,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, PETER B. VVEILER, citizen of the United States,residing at Detroit, county of Wayne, Stateof Michigan,

have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Multiple-FusePlugs, anddeclare the following to be a full, clear, and exactdescription of the same, such as will enable others skilled in the artto which it pertains to make and use the same, reference being had tothe accompanyin drawings, which form a part of this specihcation.

The object of my invention is to provide a multiple fuse plug of simple,durable, and inexpensive construction.

A further object is to provide a fuse plug which may be renewed whenburnt out by merely turning a button as distinguished from the type ofplug with which I am familiar,-where it is necessary to replace the plugwhen the latter is burnt out.

A further object of my invention is to I provide such a plug with aplurality of fuse members so that such members may be successivelyconnected into the electrical circuit, and to provide a button which maybe turned to change the fuse member which is in use, and which willindicate which of the fuse members have been burnt out.

A further object of my invention is to provide a spider which iscomposed of fusible material so that the ends of the arms of the spidermay be used as the fuse members, and that the entire set of fuse membersmay be struck outvby a punch press from sheet material at a singleoperation.

A further object of my lnventionv is to provide a member movable in onedirection only and arranged to contact successively with the ends of thefuse members to thereby close the circuit therethrough, said membercomprising a spring adapted to form a locking member for the button, aclosure member for the circuit, and a latch member to prevent the buttonfrom being turned the wr ay so that burnt out fuse members k be throwninto the circuit.

A further object of my invention is to provide a multiple fuse plugwhich is so arranged that the fusing of one of the fuse members will notdamage the remaining unused fuse members.

A further object of my invention is to provide in combination with myimproved melt is fuse plu a member composed of insulating materim,adapted to form a com- 1921. Serial No. 459,672.

bined insulating and separating member, and to form a ratchet device forinsuring that the control button will not be turned to con nect a' burntout fuse member into the circult.

With these and other objects in view my invention consists in thearrangement, combination, and construction of the various parts of myimproved device, as described 111 the specification, stated in theobjects, and shown in the drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a vertical central sectional vilew through my improvedmultiple fuse P Figure 2 shows a horizontal sectional view taken on theline 2-2 of Figure 1,

Figure 3 shows a similar view taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1,

Figure 4 shows a top or plan view of the fuse spider,

Figure 5 shows a top or plan view of the blank from which the circuitclosing member is made, and;

Figure 6 shows a top or plan view of the assembled plug.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, I have used the referencenumeral 10 to indicate generally the porcelain base of my improved plug,but it will be understood that any other suitable insulating materialmay be used for this base. The lower portion of this base is designed toreceive a metal or other conducting ferrule 11 which is held from"longitudinal movement on the base in one direction by a flange 12, andwhich is held from longitudinal movement in the opposite direction orrotary movement by having one or more edge portions crimped intocorresponding recesses in the base at 13. The'ferrule 11 is beadedto-form threads which may threads formed in a socket member connectedinto a circuit.

In this'connection it is suggested that in ordinary circuits for power,lighting, and other commercial purposes it is customary to include inthe circuit a fusible member, called a fuse plug, so that an unusualsurge of current will burn out t e fusible member instead of burning outany of the parts of the current consuming devices on the circuit so thatthe latter will not be damaged by such surges. These fuse plugs areordinarily arranged in the circuit by connecting an ordinary li htsocket therein, and then screwing into t e light socket a co-act withsimilar plug member which has a wire therein connected across theterminals, which is fusible at a predetermined heat so that apredetermined amount of current will melt out the wire and thereby openthe circuit.

lVhere such plugs are used with the single wire, it is necessary toreplace the plug with a new one every time the fuse burns out or blows,and the necessity for such replacements causes considerableinconvenience. It is therefore my intention to provide such a plug witha plurality of fusible elements which are so arranged that they may beconveniently cut into the circuit successively, without it beingnecessary to replace the plug each timea fuse blows out.

The upper part of the base member has a cylindrical recess formedtherein around which is the side wall 1 1. At the bottom of this recessa shoulder 15 is formed, and in this shoulder are formed a plurality ofpockets or recesses 16, each of these 'pockets being designed to receiveone of the fuse elements of my improved plug. Above the shoulder 15, asecond shoulder 17 is formed on the inner wall 1 1 of the base 10, andin this section of wall between the two shoulders the shoulder grooves18 are formed, which register vertically with the outer ends of thepockets 16, and form continuations thereof.

Received within the recess within the base 10 between the shoulders 15and 17 is a member of insulating material which I have designated by thereference numeral 19. This member has a cylindrical body portion belowwhich is a contracted portion 20 designed to fit within the walls belowthe shoulder 15. The top surface of the member i9 s a recess 22 thereinconcentric with the circumference so that an annular flange 23 is formedat its upper outer edge, this flange having serrations 24 for a purposewhich will hereafter bemade clear. The main connecting wire 27 passesdown through the member 19 through the main body portion thereof fromthe central part of the recess 22, as is indicated by the dotted lines26. This wire 27 then passes down through one of the partitionsbetween'the pockets 16 in the main body portion 10 to position adjacentto the ferrule 11, where the body portion is exteriorly recessed to forma pocket in which the end of the wire 27 may be soldered at 28 to theferrule 11 to thereby form an electrical connection therewith.

The member 19 may have a rib 29 at one side designed to be received in agroove in the wall 14 to prevent the member 19 from rotating when it isreceived in the body member.-

A multiple fuse member is shown in Fi ure 4: and designated generally bythe reference numeral 30, this member having a substantially circularbody portion with a central opening therein designed to receive the endof a rivet 31 which extends down through the body member 10 to thebottom thereof, where it is upset to hold against a metallic washer 32.The member 19 is recessed at its bottom central portion to receive thehead of the rivet 31, and the latter forms a permanent electricalconnection between the multiple fuse member and the second end of thecircuit into which the fuse is connected. The fuse member has aplurality ofarms 33 extended radially there from which preferably have acontracted portion 34 designed to determine the point at which the armswill fuse or burn out when the current therethrough reaches a member sothat the member 19 may be ressed down over "the main portion 30,

iereby allowing the arms 33 to extend through the pockets 16, throughthe grooves 18, and then to be bent over into the lower portions of theserrations 24. The arms are bent at 35 to pass upwardly through thegrooves 18, and at 36 to extend over the'serrations so that thecontracted portions 34 are disposed within the pockets 16, therebycausing the arms to fuse within such pockets, whereby the flash of thefusing will be either confined to one such pocket, or pass up throughthe corresponding groove 18, and escape through the top of the recess inthe body member without'coming in contact with the remaining arms tothereby damage them.

For completing the circuit through the arms 33 successively I haveprovided the brush or wiper 37, which is illustrated in detail in Figure5, and which is moved by the button 38 extending through the covermember 39 of the body. The brush 37 consists of a blank formed fromsheet metal or other conducting material having a main elongated portionperforated at one end and having laterally extending ears at'the endadjacent to the perforation. The operating button has an enlargedportion above the cover 39, designed to be grasped by the hand to rotatethe button, and an indicating character 40 is formed at one end thereof.The cover 39 also has indicating numerals 41 thereon so that as thebutton is rotated, the character 40 may point to the characters 41successively to indicate which of the arms 33 is in contact with thebrush 37.

The button 38 has a shank extending through the cover 39 which shank hasa contracted portion at the lower end thereof having oppositelongitudinal grooves 12 at the lower end thereof, which have recesses 43at their upper ends. The cars at the ends of the brush 37 are designedto be turned up into the grooves 42 and then to have their ends crimpedinto the recesses 43, so that the portion 44 of the ears may hold thebrush from rotating relative to the but ton, by their contact with theedges of the grooves-42, and the ends 45 may hold the brush fromlongitudinal displacement by their contact with the recesses 43. The endof the wire 27 is extended through the perforation in the brush 37, andthen upset so that the brush may rotate around the wire, but will forman electrical contact therewith.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the circuit through the plugincludes the ferrule 11, wire 27, brush 37, arm 33, portion 30, and therivet 31. By turning the button 38, the brush 37 may be broughtsuccessively into contact with each of the arms 33, so that when one ofthe arms has been fused, then the brush may be swung around to the nextarm. In order to replace a burnt out fuse with my improved plug, thebutton is rotated a proportionate part of a turn, whereby all thedifiiculty of replacing ,the plug of the ordinary type is done awaywith. In this connection it will be noted the serrations 24 are soarranged that brush 37 can only be rotated in one direction, whereby theposition of the button and the indicating characters 40 ,and 41 show thenumber of the arms 33 that have been burnt out.

The cover 39 for the plug has an annular downwardly extending flange atits outer edge which engages the outer edge of the wall 14, and whichmay have a portion thereof crimped into corresponding recesses of thewall 14 to hold the cover from displacement, as is illustrated at 46 inthe drawings. There is also a central downwardly extending flange 47which forms a sleeve around the shank of the button and engages theupper surface of an insulating washer 48, which in turn rests on theupper surfaces of the ears of the brush 37. It will thus be seen thatthe sleeve 47, washer 48, and ears 45 will prevent the button fromcoming out of the plug, while at the same time the washer 48 insulatesthe brush 37 from the button and the cover 39.

In the assembly of my improved plug, the multiple fuse member is firstplaced in the recess in the body, with the arms 33 extending up throughthe grooves 18, the member 19 is then placed in the recess, and the arms33 are bent as at 36 so that their ends extend into the bottoms of theserrations 24. The button 38, cover 39, washer 48, the brush 37, and thewire 27 are then assembled by first upsetting the wire to hold it in thebrush 37, then bending the cars into the grooves 42, and then crimpingthe ends of the ears into the recesses 43. The brush assembly may thenbe set into the body and secured in place by crimping the edges of theflange on the body member at 46. The ferrule 11 may then he slipped onand crimped into place at 13, and the end of the wire 27 (which willslip down through the member 19 and body 10 when the brush is installed)soldered to the ferrule at 28.

In the practical operation of my improved device, the parts are allassembled into the unit as described, and then the unit may be screwedinto the socket, always provided in commercial electrical circuits forthe fuse plugs. When so placed, my plug will act as an ordinary plug,until the arm 33 which is connected, may be fused or blown by any cause.Then it is only necessary to rotate the button from one of thecharacters 41 to the next in order to connect a new arm 33, and therebyreclose the circuit.

The many practical advantages resulting from the use of my improveddevice have been brought out in the course of this specification, but itmay be specially pointed out here that a large amount of time is savedby the use of my improved plug as compared with the use of the ordinarysingle fuse plug. The time saved by the fact that itis unnecessary tochange plugs also adds to the efficiency of the circuit in which myimproved plug is used. My plug is also so simply constructed that it hasfew, if any, more parts than the ordinary single fuse plug, and all ofthe parts that are used are of such simple construction that they are.not likely to get out of order or be broken, but can, if necessary, bereadily replaced.

Some changesmay be made in the arrangement and construction of the'various parts of my improved device without departing from the spirit ofthe invention therein, and it is my intention to cover by the appendedclaims such changes as may be reasonably included in the scope thereof.

\Vhat I claim is:

1. In a device of the class described, a body member having a recess inthe top thereof, said recess having shoulders formed in the side wallsthereof whereby it is divided into two portions of different diameters,the bottom portion being the smaller, a member of cylindricalcross-section adapted to be received within said recess, the lowerportion of said member being contracted to correspond with the portionsof the recess and the upper surface of the member having serrationstherein, a multiple fuse element comprising a body portion adapted tolay between the cylindrical member and the bottom of the recess andhaving arms adapted to extend up between the cylindrical member and theside walls of the recess, the ends of said arms being turned over intosaid serrations, a covermember for said recess, a shank journalledtherein, a brush mounted on said shank in position to suecessively entersaid serrations and to contact with ends of the arms therein when theshank is rotated, and means for connecting the body of the fuse elementand the brush into an electrical circuit.

9. In a device of the class described, the combination of a body memberhaving a cylindrical recess in the top thereof, said recess having anoffset portion in the bottomthereof and having pockets formed in saidoffset portion, a fuse element designed to be received within saidrecess and having arms extended through said pockets, a second memberdesigned to enter said recess to form a closure member to separate saidpockets whereby the fusing of one arm may not injure the remaining arms,and means for selectively closing an electrical circuit through saidarms.

3. In a device of the class described, the combination of a body memberhaving a recess in the top thereof, a plurality of fuse elements withinsaid recess, a cover member forsaid recess, ashank journalled in saidcover member, means for closing a circuit through said elementsselectively, and means for insulating said shank and cover member fromsaid circuit closing means.

f. In a device of the class described, the combination of a body memberhaving a recess in the top thereof, with a cover, a plurality of fuseelements disposed within the recess, a shank extended through said covermember, a brush connected to said shank to thereby be moved tosuccessively contact with said elements, and combined means forfastening the brush to the shank, and for insulating the brush from thecover member.

5. In a device of the class described, the combination of a body memberhaving a recess therein, with a plurality of fixed fuse elementsdisposed within the recess, a cover member for the recess, a shankextended through said cover, a brush having ears formed at one enddesigned to be folded up to engage the shank to fasten the brush to theshank, and a washer of insulating material disposed between said earsand the cover to both insulate the cover from the brush and hold theshank from sliding out of the cover.

6. In a device of the class described, a body member having a reoemtherein, a plurality of spaced fuse members within said recess, acentral terminal in said body, means for connecting said terminal withthe fuse members, a movable brush device designed to swing to contactsuccessively with said fuse members, an outside terminal member on saidbody, and a wire extended from said last terminal to the brush member,the wire being pivotally connected to the brush member at its axiswhereby the circuit may be maintained through the brush in any of itspositions.

7. In a multiple fuse plug, in combination, a body member having arecess in one end, said recess provided with a lurality of wall pockets,a member arrange within said recess to insulate individual pockets fromeach other, said member having an edge serrated to correspond with saidpockets, a fuse element having a plurality of arms radiating from acommon center, individual arms disposed in individual wall pockets ofthe recess and extending therefrom to be turned over into thecorresponding serration of said insulating member, each of said armshaving a reduced portion positioned within the pocket, a movable brushmember adapted to successively contact with the portion of said armsdisposed in said serrations to close the circuit therethrough. I

8. In a multiple fuse plu a body member provided with a pluraIity ofinternal wall pockets arranged in an annular series, a centrallydisposed contact member, a plurality of fusible contact elementsradiating from said center contact member, said fusible contact elementsdisposed one in each wall pocket, a centrally disposed member in saidrecess insulating said fusible elements as they are disposed in the wallockets from one another, each of said fusible elements having a lessenedportion disposed within the wall pocket, said centrally disposed memberhaving an upper surface serrated to correspond with said wall pockets,each of said fusible contact elements extending up wardly from its wallpocket to be turned into the corresponding serration of said centrallydisposed member, a movable brush arranged to travel over said serrationto suecessively contact with the individual fusible elements.

In testimony whereof, I sign this specification.

PETER B. \VEILER

